Food Scraps Drop-off
How to Get Started
Sign up to receive occasional email updates about the food scraps drop-off program.
Find a container to collect food scraps. Pick up free compostable bags at a Washington County food scraps drop-off site. If using a bag not provided by the county, check that it has the “compostable” logo from the Biodegradable Products Institute (BPI) on the bag or the box.
Start collecting food scraps at home. Line your container with a compostable bag and fill it with food scraps and other accepted items. See the Frequently Asked Questions for details on what is and is not accepted.
Bring bagged food scraps to a drop-off site. Bring your filled compostable bag to a free drop-off site. Pick up another free bag while you are there. To ensure there are enough bags for everyone, please only take the number of bags you drop off.
North Environmental Center
6065 Headwaters Pkwy., Forest Lake, MN 55025
Hours
- Monday: 11 a.m. - 7 p.m.
- Wednesday: 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
- Friday: 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
- Saturday: 8 a.m. - 2 p.m.
North Yard Waste Site
6065 Headwaters Pkwy., Forest Lake, MN 55025
Winter Hours: December - March
- Monday: 11 a.m. - 7 p.m. (or dusk)
- Wednesday: 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
- Friday: 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
- Saturday: 8 a.m. - 2 p.m.
Summer Hours: April - November
- Monday: 11 a.m. - 7 p.m. (or dusk)
- Wednesday: 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
- Friday: 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
- Saturday: 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
- Sunday: 11 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
South Environmental Center
4039 Cottage Grove Dr., Woodbury, MN 55129
Hours
- Tuesday: 11 a.m. - 7 p.m.
- Thursday: 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
- Friday: 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
- Saturday: 8 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
Mahtomedi Site
800 Stillwater Road, Mahtomedi, MN 55115
Hours
Open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, unless otherwise noted.
Search the Disposal Directory to find more drop-off locations outside of Washington County.
Yes - Items Accepted
Food
- Coffee grounds, filters, and tea bags.
- Dairy products.
- Eggs and eggshells.
- Food for pets and animals.
- Fruit and vegetables.
- Grain products: bread, pasta, beans, and rice.
- Meat, fish, and bones.
- Nuts and shells.
Non-recyclable paper
- Paper towels, napkins and tissues.
- Pizza delivery boxes.
- Paper egg cartons.
- Dirty paper bags.
Certified compostable products
- Certified compostable paper and plastic cups, plates, bowls, utensils, and containers.
- Look for the BPI logo to ensure it is compostable.
No - Items Not Accepted
- Animal and pet waste, litter, or bedding.
- Baby wipes.
- Cleaning wipes.
- Dead animals.
- Diapers.
- Dryer lint and dryer sheets.
- Frozen food boxes.
- Recyclable items (cartons, glass, metal, paper, plastic).
- Rubber.
- Styrofoam.
- Wood.
- Yard waste.
Quick tips for storage and transport
- Use a rigid tote or pail to transport bags.
Compostable bags start to break down sooner than you think. Using a rigid container that can be emptied and returned helps avoid spills and leaks in your vehicle. - Avoid plastic bags.
Plastic bags are not accepted, because they are very difficult to empty and frequently too dirty to recycle. If you don’t have a tote, try using a paper grocery bag instead. They should hold up for the trip and are compostable. - Freeze it.
While it isn’t necessary, if you’re concerned about odors during transport, you can always freeze your bags. - Seal it.
If you’re worried about pests, try using a 5-gallon pail with a tight seal or a galvanized steel can with locking lid, and always keep it stored in a cool dry place.
Forty percent of all food in America is wasted. Recycling food scraps is a great option, but reducing the amount of food we waste is even better. Over 30% of food in the United States is wasted. In most homes, more food goes in the trash than any other material, and this can cost a four-person family up to $1,500 per year. Food waste also means all the resources that went into producing that food are wasted. Here are some tips to help you reduce food waste.
1. Store it right.
To make it last, make sure you’re storing your food correctly.
- Milk: Don’t store it in your refrigerator door, where your refrigerator is warmest; instead, put it in the colder parts of your refrigerator.
- Bread: If you won’t be eating it within a couple of days, freeze it.
- Fruits and veggies: Most will last longer if you wait to wash until you’re about to eat them.
- Bananas: Store them away from other fruit (unless you want the other fruit to ripen faster).
- Onions/potatoes: Do not store these two near each other – the onions will cause the potatoes to sprout.
Another storage tip is to create a shelf in your refrigerator just for food that needs to be eaten soon. For more food storage tips, visit the Save the Food website.
2. Freeze it to make it last.
Your freezer can greatly extend the life of foods – use it to store food that you won’t be eating right away.
- Freeze in portions. For example, freeze bread in slices, and freeze meal-size portions of soups.
- Make sure whatever you are freezing is in an airtight container to preserve flavor.
- Most liquid foods will expand in the freezer, so be sure to leave some space at the top of containers to account for this.
- Don’t worry about those water crystals that sometimes form on foods – those are totally normal.
- The best ways to defrost food are to place it in the refrigerator, in your microwave, or in a bowl of cold water. Do not defrost on the counter or in warm water.
3. Understand food packaging dates.
Due to the misunderstanding of package dates, 90% of people occasionally throw away food too soon, and over half of us do it regularly.
- Best before, best by, and use by: Dates listed along with these phrases do not relate to food safety. They are related to quality and are the dates by which a brand stands by its product. So those chips with a best by April 1, 2020 date may not have been as fresh on April 20, 2020, but they were still totally safe. An exception is infant formula – formula should be used by the date on its packaging.
- Sell by: Don’t worry about these dates, as they’re intended for store staff and account for food being good beyond that date.
- Be careful about leaving food that should be refrigerated in the car or on the counter for too long, as this can cause it to spoil before its expiration date.
- Your senses of sight, smell, and taste are your best tools for determining food safety – if it looks, smells, or tastes bad, toss it.
Learn more about food package dates on the Environmental Protection Agency website.
4. Fix that food.
Do you have food that’s wilted, stale, or too salty? Follow these tips to save food that’s on the brink:
- Wilted: A quick soak in ice water can revive veggies like carrots, celery, broccoli and salad greens. Veggies that don’t perk up can still be great in cooked dishes.
- Stale: Put stale crackers or chips in a toaster oven for a minute to crisp them back up. Stale bread can be toasted to make toast.
- Too salty: Add lemon juice, vinegar or brown sugar, or dilute with water or lemon juice.
- Burned: Discard the burned portion of the dish, and then put the unburned food into a new pot and cover with a damp cloth for ten minutes. This should remove much of the burnt flavor.
5. Make a plan.
Before shopping for food, look at what you have in your refrigerator and pantry to make sure you’re not purchasing items that you already have. A look in your pantry and refrigerator can also give you ideas for what you might purchase to help you use what you do have. (Maybe some milk would help you eat up that cereal before it gets stale!) Save the Food offers tools to help you better plan meals and minimize waste whether you’re cooking for one or your whole family!
Need more tips? Learn more from the Ramsey/Washington Recycling and Energy on how to buy the right amount of food and make it last longer.
These food saving tips are available in Somali and Spanish.
- (Somali) Taraynta Qashinka Cuntada (PDF).
- (Spanish) Reducción del Desperdicio de Alimentos (PDF).